Democrats Test Their Reach in Deep Red Tennessee

Justin Pearson is a 31 year old state lawmaker from Tennessee. He is running for Congress in the 9th district. That district is rural and used to lean Democratic but lawmakers redrew it to favor Republicans. In the last presidential vote Trump won there by more than twenty one points. Even though the odds look slim the national Democratic party has put Pearson's race on its midterm target list.

Why would they do that? The idea is to make Republicans spend money defending seats they think are safe. When the GOP has to defend many places they have less cash for the real swing districts that could decide who controls the House. By adding more targets the Democrats also tell donors that fights are getting tougher because of high prices and the Iran war which have hurt Trump's popularity. Party officials hope this will unlock more contributions from supporters who want to see competitive races. Early signs show Republican groups buying ads in some of the newly added districts and Democratic candidates saying their fundraising jumped after being listed. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added Pearson's race and 13 others to its target list, expanding its battlefield to 66 Republican-held seats.

Not everyone agrees with the plan. A spokesman for the Republican House campaign said the Democrats are spreading themselves too thin, pretending every district is a battle. An election analyst said he will only believe it when he sees real money spent. He thinks it could turn into wishful thinking. Democrats answer that they chose these districts because they like the candidates and think an upset could add seats to a possible House majority. They also point to Pearson's record in the state legislature as a reason for confidence.

It is still unclear how much cash Democrats will actually spend on these new targets. Recent finance reports are not out yet and the party has not shared details. However a Republican backed PAC funded by a billionaire spent almost three quarters of a million dollars on digital ads for a candidate in Nevada's second district last week showing that the opposition is paying attention.